Reviews with content warning for War - Anna Karénine

Reviews tagging 'War'

Anna Karénine by Leo Tolstoy

30 reviews

bookish_bry's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Overall I enjoyed Anna Karenina. It had a lot of interesting and complex characters. I found each of them being my favorite at different points in the novel (except Vronsky whom I did not particularly like) and I found myself annoyed with them at different times.

The foreshadowing was done great. I especially liked how

trains were constantly mentioned throughout the book foreshadowing Anna's eventual suicide. The horse metaphor was also pretty well done.

It did drag in some places, though really what can you expect from a book of this length, and while I understood the strategy behind the last part

after Anna's suicide, Levin's revelation wasn't particularly interesting to me. I actually disagree with the choice to not share his spiritual thoughts with Kitty and think that could have been a more satisfying ending to me personally.

Content Warnings

katybradley888's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative reflective relaxing sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Content Warnings

kateships's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

As soon as I was done with this book I wanted to start over. It’s very dense so it’s slow to read the first time, but once I adjusted, I ate it up. The parts that went in depth about farming and politics were a bit slow but still kind of interesting. Having a family tree handy is useful for this one too, as a the groups of characters all intersect in ways and there are repetitive names.
This story is beautifully done, tragic, romantic, complicated.

Content Warnings

b_shiara's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional informative slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

FINALLY!!!

This books was insufferable. No need to say anything else, just INSUFFERABLE

Content Warnings

pejahanako's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This book was incredibly surprising to me. I found that the pacing, despite the length of the book, was fairly fast and the romantic plotline was contemporary and relatable. I really enjoyed some of the philosophical reflections of the character Levin, as well as the overall social commentary on upper class society and marriage. However, I do think that some of the commentary- especially on Russia in this specific era- was lost on me, and many of the political discussions were extremely confusing. I think that some of the flaws of this book are to be found in its sheer length and its tangents. While some of the reflections are important and thoughtful, many are repetitive and could be cut out for a more enjoyable read. I also feel that some of the internal monologues detracted from the plotline and character development and seemed to be there for the personal reflection of Tolstoy- rather than the education of the reader. Overall- a deserved classic, with some obvious flaws.

Content Warnings

novelyon's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

anna's narrative slapped but levin was so boring, and worse, a landlord.........the peasants should've killed him the way the serfs did fyodor dostoevsky's dad :/

Content Warnings

annasbookreviews's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging inspiring reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Content Warnings

thesawyerbean's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging funny reflective relaxing sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I have finally finished this tome! I found it to be surprisingly easy to read, full of drama and scandal, with richly developed characters and interpersonal relationships. I loved being able to see how the characters, their worldview and their relationships with the other characters changed over the course of the novel, in such a vivid manner that you could feel impending disaster just from the way they spoke. All the main characters were weirdly loveable despite their actions, and it was especially interesting to see Tolstoy’s own life mirrored in the story of Levin.

Having said this, I did find the interspersed verbiage about a collection of political, religious, and societal issues of the time to be somewhat tedious, and they often killed the momentum. It did give opportunities to delve deeper into each character’s psyche, but I was ultimately not engrossed.
When significant events occurred, the writing was enthralling, humorous and utterly enjoyable.
I would say this is definitely worth the read, not only to say you’ve read it, but as a whole experience.

Content Warnings

kellywa2711's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

kimveach's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging emotional informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I'm glad I finally got around to reading this book. It is so much more than a romance. I suggest that you read it as an ebook if you aren't fluent in French. The translation had many French phrases which you need to comprehend in order to understand the conversations between the characters.

Content Warnings

More...